Pakistan is developing long-range ballistic missile capabilities that might enable it to strike targets outside of South Asia, including the United States, according to a senior U.S. official who has voiced concerns about the country’s missile technological breakthroughs. In a lecture at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, Deputy National Security Advisor Jon Finer said that Pakistan’s activities pose a “emerging threat” to the United States and create “real questions” about its objectives.
Finer’s comments coincide with worsening ties between the United States and Pakistan, especially after the United States withdrew its troops from Afghanistan in 2021. He pointed out that there are now genuine concerns about Islamabad’s objectives because Pakistan’s missile program seems to have changed its focus from thwarting Indian threats to possibly targeting the United States. In response, the United States has imposed more restrictions on Pakistan’s ballistic missile development program, including actions against the state-run defense organization in charge of these developments.
“Very few nations have both nuclear weapons and the ability to launch missiles straight at the US mainland. In all honesty, they are hostile to the United States—Russia, North Korea, and China—so it’s difficult for us to view Pakistan’s activities as anything other than a new danger to the US,” he said.
Finer emphasized that Pakistan’s missile technology has advanced significantly, including the creation of advanced equipment that can test larger rocket motors. He cautioned that if these patterns persist, Pakistan may be able to target areas well outside of its immediate vicinity, including parts of the United States. This declaration follows further U.S. sanctions placed on a number of Pakistani organizations implicated in
These restrictions are discriminatory, according to Pakistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which also claims that they jeopardize regional stability by escalating military imbalances with India.
Pakistan has developed its own advanced missile systems, such as the MIRV-capable Ababeel missile, in response to India’s ballistic missile defense programs. It is highly likely that China transferred this technology to Pakistan. India’s attempts to improve its missile defense capabilities are perceived as being thwarted by this development.
